American Century wins $373M judgment from JPMorgan unit
Austin Business Journal by Paul Koepp, Reporter
Date: Thursday, March 22, 2012, 1:03pm CDT
American Century Investments quietly won a $373 million judgment last year against a subsidiary of JPMorgan Chase & Co. , according to court records reviewed by the Kansas City Business Journal.
An arbitration panel ruled in August that JPMorgan, which held a minority stake in American Century, broke a revenue agreement with the Kansas City-based asset management firm in an attempt to weigh down its value, making it a cheaper acquisition target.
A Jackson County judge upheld the award in December over JPMorgan’s objections. JPMorgan paid a lump sum of $384 million, including interest, later that month, said Randy Hendricks of Rouse Hendricks German May PC , which represented American Century.
“It represents an important event for a Kansas City company to prevail in what resulted in the largest verdict in the state of Missouri, against a Wall Street powerhouse,” Hendricks said.
JPMorgan Chase Bank NA is the third-largest bank in Austin when ranked by deposits. The bank had $3.96 billion in local deposits in June 2011 and has more than 70 branches in the area.
Judge Jim Kanatzar unsealed key documents in the matter March 21 after the Business Journal had requested and received part of the case file from a court clerk. Time Inc. also had filed a motion to unseal the case.
American Century filed a lawsuit under seal in Jackson County Circuit Court in Kansas City in April 2009, alleging that JPMorgan had violated a 2003 agreement to market certain American Century ...
